Gray wolf in the Methow, July 2008. What will the future bring for wolves in Washington?
Photo: Conservation NW remote camera

Tragedy Hits Washington's Wolf Pack

Washington residents last summer were thrilled by news that gray wolves had returned, on their own,
to mountains of the North Cascades. Last July, Conservation Northwest helped document and track Washington's only known
family of wolves, dubbed "The Lookout Pack." Sadly, we broke the news last week that
at least one,
possibly two, of the nine wolves in the pack was killed by poachers. Two residents of Twisp, Bill and Tom White,
are suspected of illegally trapping and shooting two wolves, including one of the
pups photographed by
Conservation Northwest this summer. This latest news, coming at such a delicate phase of wolf recovery,
is just one of a string of recent stories of illegal wildlife killing to come out of Washington State.

Send a message to
Washington's Senators Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell supporting Washington's wildlife. Let them know that
you want to see their leadership to see the wolf poaching case fully prosecuted under the law and sufficient
resources provided to wildlife managers to provide for the recovery of wolves in Washington State. And stay tuned
to Conservation Northwest's website for the latest updates and developments as the investigation continues.

Development pushes the forest edge, but less so now at the foot of Blanchard Mountain.
Photo: Paul Anderson

Choosing Forests Over Sprawl at Blanchard

The Washington State Board of Natural Resources this month voted to buy 80 acres of private land on the south slope of
Blanchard Mountain, helping
conserve working forest lands and stem the tide of development. It's the first of future transactions and
one of several outcomes of the 2007 Blanchard Strategies Agreement, which protected 1,600 acres of mature
forests and popular recreation trails at the heart of Blanchard Mountain, the southernmost outpost of the
Chuckanut Mountains.

Conservation Northwest was one of a broader group of participants in a
year-long, collaborative process
to create a plan that works for all stakeholders, and for wildlife too, for the popular recreation area.
The agreement encourages increased public forest ownership to ensure that forest lands are part of the
solution to the threat of sprawl.

There could be lynx in this landscape, yet, mysteriously, the Kettles were left out of recent critical habitat designation for the wild cat.
Photo: Eric Zamora

Kettle Range Left Out–Again–for Lynx

A final critical habitat rule
falls
short
from protecting the endangered Canada lynx. The recently published
rule excludes areas in northeastern Washington that biologists have
identified as essential for lynx conservation, including the Kettle
River Range, the Wedge, Salmo Priest, and Little Pend Oreille. The Kettle
River Range and the Wedge are classified as "core" sections of lynx
historic range. These lands have persistent and verified records of
lynx occurrence, recent evidence of reproduction, and vast tracts of
suitable habitat. To protect lynx, ten conservation groups are
challenging
the agency's ruling in court.

From bears to elk to fish to salamanders, wildlife need to get across roads–somehow. Wildlife bridges could help.
Photo: Greg Mroz

Stimulating Safe Wildlife Passage

Allowing animals to pass safely north and south along the Cascades Range means first getting them over and
under the interstate highway that cuts the range roughly in half. This summer the Department of Transportation
plans to break ground on the first 5 of 6.5 miles of a project that promises to do just that. But federal
stimulus funds are
needed to help complete the remaining 1.5 miles of the I-90 Snoqualmie Pass East Project, a section that
includes new lanes, chain-up areas on the westbound lanes, and Washington's first premier wildlife overpass.
Let Washington's officials know you
support full funding
for wildlife bridges.

Could this be you? Our Seattle office needs a committed development professional to "get wild."
Photo: Conservation NW

The Best Job: Keeping the Northwest Wild

We are looking for a highly motivated, organized person to serve as full-time development and outreach
associate in our Seattle office. The qualified candidate will work with our development director in Seattle
and membership director in Bellingham to conduct development and outreach activities, to manage our annual
Hope for a Wild Future
auction, and to oversee our Seattle office in the Interbay neighborhood. The position begins April 2009.